Regional regimes need to evolve

The history of the Middle East for the past 60 years has been one of revolution, evolution and seeking peace.

Due to the absence of an ‘evolution mechanism' in the Middle Eastern republics like Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and others, their collapse was expected by the regional intelligentsia for a long time.

What is news is that their collapse came in tandem.

During the 1950s and '60s, army officers in some Arab countries overthrew the traditional governments and established republics. As a result, the Arab world was split in two camps, which rejected each other.

The republicans called themselves ‘progressive' and labelled the traditionalist camp as ‘reactionary'. But in essence both were seeking change through different routes — the republicans through ‘revolution' and the traditional regimes through ‘evolution', though it was bitterly criticised for being too slow.

Eight years after coming into existence, the republics ran out of steam and their performance went downhill. They gradually became dictatorships as leaders became presidents for life. The republics' failure heralded the custom of hereditary dictatorship.

The last wave of the republican tide in the traditional Arab camp came 15 years after the establishment of the Egyptian republic. Egyptian military support (1962-67) to the newly formed Yemeni republic ended by conceding to tribes the right to maintain their weapons, including tanks, and allowing their members to carry light weapons within the republican (tribal) state. That signalled co-existence between the two camps across the Arab world.

What we are witnessing today in the Arab world is unlike the revolutions of the 1950s and '60s and, unlike Iran's, 32 years ago, against the Shah. This because events today also lack the ‘evolution mechanism' which is manifested by its inability to accommodate reformers like Mohammad Khatami, Mir Hussain Mousavi and Mahdi Karroubi, not to mention outside reformers. One cannot fail to notice that the recent revolutions and upheavals have no religious or nationalistic message for export, unlike those in the past.

They are more concerned about fighting corruption at home and introducing an ‘evolution mechanism' to deal with national and individual despair because of stagnation of the system.

Timely support

Seeing that republican partisans don't admit to collective failure of republics vis-à-vis the traditional regimes and ignore the relentless support for republics' evolution provided by TV channels owned and broadcast from traditional states — the Qatari-owned Al Jazeera broadcasting from Qatar and the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya broadcasting from the UAE — is not surprising.

It, however, proves the failure of these republics. Credit should be given to traditional regimes for giving republics timely support.

Regardless of the past, it is imperative today for both the traditional and republican regimes to respond proactively to the acute need for reforms, in order to satisfy the minimum, universally accepted demand for good governance that the young generation, which is wired to the internet and satellite TV, is making.

This ‘evolution mechanism' should be introduced in all regimes that lack it and its efficiency must be improved in regimes that have it, including Israel, the self-proclaimed ‘only democracy in the Middle East'.

Israel is called upon to move up the ladder of evolution, away from the outdated Zionist dogma that is strangling it in this age of satellite TV channels and the internet. Tel Aviv is in clear violation of Palestinian human rights.

The Palestinians bear no legal or historical responsibility for what the Nazis did to the Jews in Europe. Israel should embrace prevailing world human rights values and be ready for tomorrow's world.

Through such evolution, which should touch countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran, the Middle East will be ready for real peace. This is the voice of the hitherto silent majority that is emerging today and will be governing tomorrow.

This reading of the situation is based on an impartial logic, leaning neither to the right nor left. Positive change based on discipline and logic will be highly welcomed and appreciated. 

Saqr Bin Zayed Bin Saqr Al Nahyan is a Dubai-based author.